


Bedside Manner

by EggMuffin



Series: EggMuffin's FicWriMo [7]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Established Relationship, Hospitals, M/M, and is a little shit about it, eggsy is worried, half-arsed attempt at writing a scottish accent, merlin gets appendicitis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-08-29 17:09:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8498290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EggMuffin/pseuds/EggMuffin
Summary: Merlin ends up at the hospital with appendicitis. Eggsy worries. 
 
EggMuffin's FicWriMo #7





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt: ''how about merwin where one of them ends up in the hospital for a perfectly normal reason - tonsils, appendix etc.'' by [anarchycox](http://anarchycox.tumblr.com/)
> 
> This was fun to write! Also Merlin obviously reads [Scottish twitter](https://twitter.com/cannyswim/status/612975944761016320).

Over the past two years, Merlin had spent countless hours cheering Eggsy up in the hospital. Eggsy hated being on medical leave, mostly because he still felt like getting injured on a mission made him a failure, like he still had to prove something. Merlin didn’t mind listening Eggsy whine over medical leave diets (‘’It’s just nutrition shakes, Merlin! It’s not food, it’s bullshit!’’), but he hated it the crestfallen, resigned look Eggsy got when doctors told him how long he would be out of commission. He could never find the right words to make Eggsy believe that getting injured didn’t make him a bad agent, so the best he could do was stay by Eggsy’s side and try to take his mind off such thoughts.

Eggsy, on the other hand, had never seen Merlin injured or ill enough to warrant a hospital stay. Sure, everyone got a cold sometimes, even Merlin, and once he managed to sprain his wrist (the official story involves sparring, the _actual_ story involved Merlin, Eggsy and a newly-purchased sex swing), but nothing too serious.

So when Merlin is admitted to a private hospital with sharp abdominal pain and nausea, Eggsy is wholly unprepared. He spends the 45 minutes it takes him to get from the HQ to the hospital freaking out, googling the symptoms and nearly convincing himself that Merlin has stomach cancer, before James, who is driving Eggsy to the hospital, gently suggests that it’s probably appendicitis. ‘’My wife had it three years ago,’’ James says, voice calm as ever, ‘’they removed her appendix and she had to stay at the hospital for a day, but she’s fit as a fiddle now.’’

‘’Yeah, but…’’ Eggsy begins to say before admitting that James was probably right. Merlin would be fine. No one had ever died of appendicitis, right? Google informs him appendicitis had a very low mortality rate, but there _was_ a mortality rate, so Eggsy freaks out again.

When he gets to the hospital, it turns out that Merlin is more or less fine, if a bit… grumpy.

‘’Ye ever wanty just wrap yerself up in tin foil nice and cosy and then just fucking get right inty the microwave and blow yerself up _tae fuck_!’’ is the first thing he says when he sees Eggsy.

He looks a bit pale and uncomfortable, but it doesn’t look like he’s in pain. ‘’Merlin, luv, you know I don’t speak Scottish,’’ Eggsy says as he sits down on the chair next to Merlin’s bed. ‘’Gave me a fright, you did.’’

‘’Didn’t mean tae,’’ Merlin groans and Eggsy nearly jumps up. ‘’What is it? Pain?’’

‘’Nae, they’ve got me oan the good stuff. Any more and I’ll be seeing wee green men.’’ Merlin makes an effort to sit up, but Eggsy stops him. ‘’It’s alright, Eggsy, I’m not dying.’’

‘’You’re still not sitting up. What’s happening, anyway?’’

‘’Appendix. They’re gonna cut it oot. Probably gonna keep me here for a day, see how I fare withoot it.’’

Eggsy can’t resist kissing Merlin on the forehead. ‘’About time that I get to practice my bedside manner,’’ he says.

‘’Can ye believe it, nearly thirty years as an agent withoot a single hospital stay and wit gets me in the end is my fecking appendix?’’

‘’It’s your body telling you that you need a break,’’ jokes Eggsy and Merlin groans again, this time in annoyance. ‘’I bet they’ll tell me that I need tae rest fer a week or some other bullshite like that.’’

 ‘’D’ya think that Harry would give me a couple of days off?’’

‘’Yer not taking time off tae play nursemaid, Eggsy.’’

‘’Not even if I get one of those sexy nurse outfits?’’

‘’Naw,’’ says Merlin resolutely. Then, ‘’D’ye mean that?’’

\--

Harry is more than happy to give Eggsy a couple of days off after Merlin’s operation to make sure that Merlin actually rests. He even shows up at the hospital the morning after Merlin’s operation to give Merlin a stern talking to. Their conversation consists of Harry reminding Merlin of everything he had said during Harry’s numerous hospital stays and Merlin calling Harry by increasingly inventive Scottish insults.

Merlin is initially disgruntled when the nurse offers him liquids. ‘’Unbelievable, they’re treating me like a baby,’’ he grouses and eyes his glass of water with so much hatred you’d think that it had insulted his mother.

‘’Babe, you just had a piece of your digestive system removed. Give it time to adjust,’’ soothes Eggsy.

‘’Ye complain aboot hospital food all the time, ye don’t get tae say anything.’’

‘’I complain about gross nutrition shakes, not _water_ ,’’ Eggsy says with dramatic emphasis. Really, Merlin is adorable like this, no matter how much he glowers at Eggsy or the nurses.

At one point the nurse tells Merlin to move around a little. Eggsy latches himself onto Merlin’s arm and walks him around the room, holding on a little bit tighter every time Merlin’s step falters. Merlin might be adorable when he’s grumpy, but he does look weaker than usual, and Eggsy can’t help but worry. He is not used to seeing Merlin so fragile and truth be told, he doesn’t want to get used to it.

‘’Relax, love, I’m not going tae fall,’’ Merlin says when Eggsy grips him so tight his knuckles turn white.

‘’Ain’t taking any chances,’’ mumbles Eggsy and Merlin turns until they’re standing face to face. He lowers his head until their faces are almost touching. ‘’It’s gonna take a lot more than a dodgy appendix tae take me oot,’’ Merlin whispers.

‘’I know that,’’ says Eggsy a bit too quickly. He sighs. ‘’Just – I don’t like seeing you like this, in a hospital. Even if it is just because of a dodgy appendix.’’

Merlin presses his lips to Eggsy’s forehead. ‘’I hate seeing _ye_ in the hospital,’’ he confesses. ‘’And I hate being here. I dinnae how tae be ill.’’

‘’We’ll figure it out together, yeah?’’

‘’Aye, together.’’

\--

Merlin is discharged the next morning after the doctor is satisfied with the state of Merlin’s stitches and general healing.

‘’Now, remember,’’ the doctor says, ‘’a week of rest.’’ Merlin grits his teeth.

The doctor ignores Merlin’s sour expression and continues. ‘’Remember to check your stitches. It says that you work in IT, so returning to work in a week shouldn’t be out of the question, as long as you don’t exert yourself too much. No strenuous physical activity of _any_ kind,’’ he says with a pointed look at Eggsy, who is holding Merlin’s hand. Eggsy smiles brightly at the doctor. ‘’I’ll tie him down if I have to,’’ he says, pretending he didn’t understand that strenuous sexual activity was also implied.

‘’Do it gently, if you must,’’ replies the doctor with a knowing grin.

Later in the car, Merlin turns to Eggsy. ‘’Tie me down?’’ he asks, raising a brow.

‘’Yeah,’’ says Eggsy as he straps himself in. ‘’Right after I’ve changed into my nurse outfit.’’

 

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on tumblr: eggmuffinwrites
> 
> Feel free to send me ideas and prompts! After all, I did promise you 30 fics in November (and that's a lot!).
> 
> Up next: either porn or fluff. Maybe. I'm just making this up as I go along. I don't have a plan.


End file.
